This invention relates to apparatus for collecting and disposing of animal waste, and more particularly relates to apparatus for collecting and disposing of animal waste in which a frame for supporting a wste collecting bag, and a paddle for manipulating waste into the bag, are each ejectable from the working ends of a pair of elongated rods for manipulating the frame and paddle after the bag, supporting frame and paddle have served their purpose.
Various types of devices and apparatus have been developed for collecting and disposing of animal wastes. Some of these devices utilized a two-piece construction consisting of a pair of rods, one end of which was provided with a frame for supporting an animal waste receiving bag and the other of which included a paddle or pusher to facilitate collection of the waste in the bag. Examples of animal waste collecting or pick-up devices of the foregoing character are disclosed in the Bacoka U.S. Pat. No. 4,165,895, Turi U.S. Pat. No. 3,810,670, and Sanderson U.S. Pat. No. 3,827,098.
While the pick-up devices disclosed in the aforementioned patents achieve their intended purpose, they have not proved entirely satisfactory for various reasons, including the necessity for the user at some point in the clean-up operation to manually disengage the filled bg from the collecting device and dispose of it in an appropriate receptacle. Moreover, the complexity of construction and manner of use of many of the collecting devices heretofore advanced have also rendered them unsatisfactory to many users.
Accordingly, it is a general object of the present invention to provide a novel and improved apparatus for collecting and disposing of animal waste, which overcomes the aforementioned disadvantages and shortcomings of the prior art devices.
Another object is to provide a novel apparatus of the foregoing character, wherein the user thereof does not have to handle the waste collecting bag after the latter has served its purpose.
A more particular object is to provide a novel apparatus for collecting and disposing of animal waste, in which a frame for supporting a bag for collecting the waste, and a pusher paddle for manipulating the waste into the bag, are each separable from their supporting rods for disposal purposes without being touched by the hands of the user.
A specific object is to provide a novel animal waste collecting and disposing apparatus of the foregoing character, in which a spring-type ejecting mechanism is employed in the ends of the rods which receive the frame and paddle so that a filled bag, its supporting frame and the manipulating paddle may be forcefully ejected into an appropriate waste receptacle without being handled by the user.
These and other objects will become apparent from the detailed description which follows.